Information from CFA Members, and the experience of H&S managers, show slips and trips to be the most frequent cause of accidents in the chilled food sector.
A recent CFA H&S WG meeting included a session described as “share and steal” focusing on the issue. Covering everything from whole company campaigns to targeted improvements. Subjects included:
- Flooring – while companies are instigating tighter specifications existing floors should be regularly measured or monitored as poor cleaning practice can lead to loss of anti-slip performance.
- Footwear – one company reported a reduction in slips and trips after enforcing limited specifications for Wellington boots. If boots were not warm and comfortable, colleagues would wear several pairs of socks causing their foothold to be insecure.
- Leisure and office areas are also sites of accidents and identifying these separately is helpful as they require different approaches to reducing the risk of slips and trips.
- Frosty and wet weather can increase the risk of accidents when colleagues are coming to work or taking smoke breaks. These areas may come under a different management line from production areas.The group continues to share its findings across the membership as it continues CFA’s commitment to Health and Safety matters.
April 2024